


Find All the Stars for Me

by QueenandLeonhardt



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-23
Updated: 2018-09-23
Packaged: 2019-07-15 19:24:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,171
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16069700
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenandLeonhardt/pseuds/QueenandLeonhardt
Summary: Ever since the return to Earth, everybody has come to the consensus that Keith and Shiro are getting married any day now. Keith has done nothing but fight these rumors from the beginning, knowing full well the state of his and Shiro's relationship. When Keith finally gets discharged from the hospital and is ready to be far away from enduring the other paladin's teasing, Shiro takes him on what Keith firmly believes is not a date.Aka a gift for lijau on tumblr!!





	Find All the Stars for Me

Keith was finally going to be discharged out of the hospital.

He’d begrudgingly had to stay here longer than any of the other paladins. He had a concussion, broken rib, and large cut to his head that kept him stuck in this place for much longer than he wanted. He watched one by one as his friends were allowed to leave, waiting for the day the doctor would allow him to be released too. He'd of course grown restless barely two days into his time here after he'd woken up, counting down the seconds until he could leave, but the fact he was the last one out brought out a bitterness in him he wouldn’t have had otherwise. It didn’t help that Pidge and Lance (the first two to leave) would talk excitedly about what outside looked like. Outside of the boring hospital walls, floors, and bed, there were aliens settling down around here and creating the area into something beautiful with their traditions and cultures. Hunk, the third to leave, was especially exuberant about the food. He’d heard some of the aliens were only creating shops temporarily until the area could be rebuilt, later leaving the area to locals. They wouldn’t be here long, and Keith wanted to see it all before they left. Keith, bored out of his mind and having to mainly deal with terrible hospital food listened on with jealousy. All in all, he was ready to be out of this place. 

The nurse told him to stay here in his room until they had all the paperwork done, but he was severely tempted to sneak out anyway. It was deep into the afternoon nearing into the evening and every movement the sun made he only felt more impatient. He’d even already changed into his civilian clothes, a brand new red jacket, black pants, and black boots, all things that his mom had picked out. Point was, he was ready to leave and he was ready to leave now. 

There was only one thing he’d miss from his hospital stay, and that was the special attention he got from Shiro. While busy, Shiro made time for the paladins daily. He’d bring meals sometimes for them all (always remembering to bring Keith his special favourites), but a lot of the time he’d just come to visit and talk. Despite the kindness Shiro showed to all of the Paladins, all of them admitted that they could tell Shiro was especially attentive to Keith’s wants and needs. Even on days where Keith was forced to rest most of the day, he’d wake up to fresh flowers in the glass vase in his room and a sly smile on his mom’s face. One time he’d gotten a small stuffed hippo Lance had teased him relentlessly about, but he’d loved and kept it all the same. It was just another instance that Shiro had cared and listened, remembering the time before Voltron where Keith had admitted to Shiro that he loved hippos the best. 

Keith probably should have tried to stop Shiro spoiling him in the beginning, especially because of the constant teasing he got from the others, but couldn’t help but let it continue. The teasing was admittedly terrible with Keith having to constantly deny the state of his and Shiro’s relationship to their friends, and it was even worse the day he had to deny vehemently to his mother that he most definitely did not need a lecture on Galra mating habits, but after two years away from Shiro he was admittedly feeling starved of the man’s attention and needed it like he needed air. 

He was staring out of the hospital window waiting when he heard a “congratulations,” from behind him. 

Keith turned around to see Shiro leaning against the doorway, a smile on his face and his arms crossed over his chest. Seeing Shiro wasn’t a surprise at all, but what was a surprise was seeing that Shiro was out of his uniform.

There hadn’t been a single instance of Shiro being out of his grey Garrison uniform since the day they’d returned. While seeing Shiro in uniform was good and all, the black v-neck shirt and tight black pants were a good look on him that Keith enjoyed profusely. He wondered if Shiro felt today was a special occasion because he was leaving. It was wishful thinking, but the outfit was really pleasing to his eyes nonetheless. 

“I heard from your mom that today is the day,” Shiro said happily.

Keith smiled back at him. “Yeah, they’re finally letting me out of here.”

“Do you have some free time?” Shiro asked, clearly trying to hide some excitement that was slowly seeping into his tone. 

Keith raised an eyebrow at him. “Do you have some free time?” 

Shiro had been nothing but busy since after the fight with Sendak, but Keith supposed being the captain of a giant Galaxy Garrison ship would require that. Despite lighting up everytime he was in Shiro’s presence, Keith would occasionally feel guilty looking at the purple circles around Shiro’s eyes and his general aura of exhaustion he sometimes emulated. Keith would voice his worries sometimes, asking if Shiro was resting enough, to which Shiro would only reply with a smile and some sort of statement about worrying more about himself than Shiro. 

Shiro smiled even more brightly at Keith. “Today is kind of special, so I got the higher ups to understand I could take a few hours off today.” 

Keith hummed. “Pretty sure you are the ‘higher ups,’ Captain.” 

“I don’t know. I’m not exactly the leader of Voltron, am I?” Shiro teased. “I should probably have asked him, but I’ve heard he can be pretty tough.” 

Keith had a slight up-quirk of his lips. “Is this where I say ‘isn’t yours is bigger than mine, Captain Shirogane?’” 

Shiro’s smooth facade quickly transformed into him being incredibly flustered. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but abruptly closed it, looking as though he physically couldn’t bring himself to reply. Keith, usually not one to get easily bashful, felt his face heat up. He really shouldn’t have let that slip out of his mouth. 

“That means I’ve spent too much time with Lance, doesn’t it?” Keith grumbled as an apology, looking at the ground.

Still with a dusting of pink across the tips of his ears and cheeks, Shiro finally found it in himself to respond. “Maybe just a bit.”

Keith realised with chagrin that yes, Lance would probably be very proud. 

From the visits, to the flowers, to the purple stuffed hippo, Lance took it upon himself to tease Keith every chance he got. What was the worst was the terrible pick-up lines Lance insisted would “work on Shiro.” All the lines were terrible and caused all the other paladins to groan, but Lance continued with them anyway as he wanted to “help Keith.” Keith always shot back that him and Shiro were no more than friends but even Lance, the last to figure anything out, saw far past his lies about Keith not being interested. All of the other paladins had apparently had long before realised Keith’s feelings for Shiro weren’t that of friendship. Even his mom and somehow unfortunately Kolivan had taken it upon themselves to drop hints here and there about how Keith finding his “forever” was admirable and how he needed to act quickly with traditional Galra habits if he wanted his “mate.” 

“Please don’t ever tell him this happened,” Keith groaned, really not wanting to get an excited Lance asking if Keith finally used one of his lines to get Shiro, in his words, “to bang Keith into oblivion.” 

“My lips are sealed,” Shiro replied, still a bit bashful.

“So what’s such a special occasion you were able to take time off of work?” Keith asked, wanting to abruptly changing the conversation. 

“Besides you finally being able to leave? I have something I want to show you,” Shiro said, obviously glad about the change of subject, tilting his head to gesture toward the hallway outside of Keith’s room. 

Keith hesitated a moment, thinking about the nurse that was going to come by any minute to tell him that he could finally leave. Then he looked again at Shiro and the excitement that he was exuding. “If it’s getting out of this hospital? I’ll do anything.” 

“For you” went unspoken, but it was something Keith was incredibly aware was true. 

Shiro smiled. “Come on. Let’s get you out of here.” 

Shiro snuck Keith out of the Garrison’s hospital through one of the side doors and outside. It’s not like anybody would really try and say “no” to Captain Takashi Shirogane, but the sentiment of saving Keith from his prison was appreciated nonetheless. Keith wasn’t really paying attention to where Shiro was taking him, just happy enough that he could finally see this newly constructed world the paladins had gushed so happily about. 

However, after a while Keith began to notice Shiro hadn’t taken him near the shops and oddly shaped architecture the others mentioned, instead only leading Keith around buildings he’d long already seen before. While there were some aliens around the side of the hospital they’d snuck out of, once deep in Garrison territory they only passed by human cadets and officers. Keith was about to question Shiro about the validity of this surprise just before Shiro finally stopped. He turned to Keith with a smile and then Keith was speechless. 

There it was. It was right in front of him, big, shiny, and bright cherry red. 

“My bike,” Keith said aloud in awe.

In space, he’d for sure missed his bike. For how much bike rides in the desert reminded him of Shiro, they were somehow a good distraction too. He practiced getting faster and tricks on that bike. He worked fast and hard getting himself to learn all the things he’d seen Shiro do so when he saw him again (and Keith knew he would see Shiro again) he’d be able to see how much Keith had grown.

“Yeah,” Shiro affirmed. “The Garrison apparently took it from the shack when they were digging around looking for evidence after you guys went into space.” 

Keith frowned. “They searched the shack?” 

Shiro gave him an apologetic look. “Yeah. I know it’s bad, but if they hadn’t taken what they did it would have all probably been taken or destroyed by Sendak’s men.”

Keith could only nod. Yeah, he should probably be at least somewhat thankful that all he had in the shack didn’t get stolen or destroyed, but that didn’t mean he was going to be happy about the Garrison messing with his Dad’s things. 

“Oh. They found this too,” Shiro said, tossing something Keith’s way.

Keith caught it. He untangled the bundle of black leather only to find it was Shiro’s old jacket. He had to bite back a gasp. 

The jacket was something Shiro had let Keith keep when he was gone to Kerberos. Shiro had no family, so the Garrison was going to take all his things. Keith had “stolen” (according to the Garrison) the jacket before they could get to it. In his childhood mind, the action felt romantic and there was no way the Garrison was going to take that sentiment away from him. He’d secretly taken the jacket with him after he’d punched Iverson and been expelled, never willing to let it go as long as Shiro wasn’t with him. 

Keith wore the jacket on days he really missed Shiro. It didn't fit, but Keith mainly didn’t wear it practically and instead shamefully imagined Shiro taking him into his arms. The smell and feel of the jacket had Keith closing his eyes and thinking about how when he'd find Shiro he'd be wrapped up in the other man's arms. It had been a child's wishful thinking of course, but that hadn’t made Keith’s feelings any less real to him. 

Keith reluctantly held the jacket out for Shiro to take back. Shiro only shook his head. 

“I gave it to you, remember?” Shiro said. “Keith, if you want it, you can keep it.” 

Keith didn’t need to be told twice. He quickly shucked off his new red jacket to replace it with Shiro’s old one. 

Shiro grinned when Keith had the jacket completely on. “It fits perfectly.” 

Keith grinned back despite the lie Shiro had just told. Yeah, it fit way better than it did before Kerberos, but the sleeves and hem were still just a bit too long. Shiro held out his hand to take Keith’s red jacket. Keith handed it to him only for Shiro to tie the jacket around his hips. 

“Are we going somewhere?” Keith asked quizzically when he noticed Shiro hop up on the bike. 

“I'm taking you to see the town,” Shiro told him happily, patting the space right behind him. “Hop on.” 

Keith hesitated, looking at the space behind Shiro where Shiro expected him to sit. There was enough room for there to be a good amount of space between them, but Keith had seen how many others sat. They were always close, close enough to make Keith anxious. 

He wasn’t scared Shiro would do anything he was uncomfortable with, that was something he knew well Shiro would never do. The space between them would be his problem. He wanted no space and to hold Shiro tightly, but he really doubted Shiro would be interested in a love struck Keith wrapping his arms around Shiro’s waist, his cheek pressed against the leather of Shiro’s jacket, loving the feeling of the warmth radiating from Shiro’s body, and paying attention to his heart beating close to Keith’s ear. Shiro’s discomfort would be worse to Keith than his own. Shiro would never say anything explicit, that just wasn’t him, but Keith knew what unwanted physical affection would do to anybody. It’s not like Shiro ever minded touching Keith, they hugged and set hands on shoulders often. The problem was that this was distinctly romantic, nothing like their other touches. 

Shiro noticed Keith’s hesitation. “Do you want to drive? I can give you directions and hold onto you if you want.” He frowned. “If you want to ride separately I think there might be a bike around here I could borrow for a bit…” 

“No!” Keith blurted out, startling Shiro. Shiro looked at him strangely, not expecting the sudden outburst. Keith flushed pink in embarrassment. “I mean, no. You don’t need to borrow a bike. I’m fine with sharing.” 

Giving him one last concerned glance, Shiro sat down on the driver’s seat of the bike. He pulled the goggles over his eyes before settling into the perfect position for driving. Keith hopped on too, but kept his distance. 

“Hold onto me so you don't fall off,” Shiro requested casually. 

Keith’s brain temporarily short-circuited. Shiro was asking Keith to wrap his arms around Shiro, to hold tightly as Shiro drove. Keith only let himself briefly imagine pressing his body closer than necessary, aligning himself perfectly against Shiro, letting his hands wrap all the way around his waist. 

Instead he simply sat behind Shiro, loosely holding onto him around his chest. He kept his distance for both their sakes.

“You can get closer, you know?” Shiro said amusedly. “I don’t bite.” 

Keith flushed, mentally wanting Shiro to bite and tease. That really conjured up some thoughts Keith really didn’t need to think about when pressed close behind Shiro. 

He quickly tampered those thoughts down before scooting closer toward Shiro. He still didn’t press himself too tightly against him, but he did grip tighter around Shiro’s middle, allowing himself to experience the feeling of hard muscle under that tight jacket and shirt.

Shiro revved up the engine, the sound music to Keith’s ears. It didn’t take long before Shiro was in the air and rushing away from the Garrison. 

He wasn’t driving, so he didn’t feel that great adrenaline rush that he always would when he was in the driver’s seat, but the rush of air around him always did something to him. He loved it, loved feeling free, and he’d missed this feeling so much. Red and Black had easily given him those rushes of adrenaline in space, enough so that he wouldn’t have gone completely crazy, but no matter how much he loved riding in the space lions there was something about the hoverbikes that hadn’t ceased to make him feel that rush he needed. He didn’t know what it was, he’d thought that piloting Red and Black would leave him jaded and bored with the feeling of the hoverbike, but he felt so alive holding onto Shiro as the wind rushed around him. He couldn’t explain it, and he didn’t really want to try. All he knew was that he was here holding Shiro and didn’t want that feeling of rushed adrenaline to go away. Shiro eventually stopped, and Keith could already feel the loss. 

“We can’t go any further on bike,” Shiro explained at the sudden stop just close enough to the shops Keith could make out the shapes of all the buildings and vendors selling wares outside. “The shops are packed too close together. We’ll have to go on foot the rest of the way where I want to take you.” 

Keith paid close attention to the surroundings as they walked past. It was amazing, how the aliens had rebuilt the area to copy their cultures. Nothing was better than seeing entire cities on alien terrain, but Keith could understand the wonder from the people of Earth experiencing aliens and their cultures for the first time. Even he could admit that seeing cultures so closely packed together was interesting to behold. He didn’t get to study too much as they walked to Shiro’s surprise destination, but he could see that aliens had brought wares from their own planets to share and sell with other aliens and humans. 

Shiro walked them past many of them, all one’s Keith was curious to look at, but finally stopped in front of an oddly shaped building. While the colours of the building were red and orange, there was somehow an organic look to it. 

“It’s a sweets shop. I heard from Hunk that what they sell is like ice cream but better,” Shiro explained happily. “Come on, I want to try it with you.” 

He liked what that sentence implied. Shiro had heard about a shop and waited until he could go with Keith. 

They opened the multi-coloured glass door to find there were a plethora of aliens and humans alike inside the shop. The area wasn’t too big, so even though there wasn’t a huge crowd so late in the day it still felt packed. There were also tables and chairs in there, not helping the slight claustrophobia Keith was experiencing. Eventually Keith noticed Ryan and James inside the place as well. They were standing together near one of the tables having a conversation. 

What was even more interesting is that they were holding hands. 

Keith would have been perfectly fine with ignoring them and going on with their business, but Shiro, ever the polite leader, smiled and waved. The two quickly separated from each other before waving back, James in particular was waving awkwardly after knowing that they’d been caught. Ryan was as stoic as usual, and probably not caring at all that Shiro and Keith were even there. 

Making the situation even worse, Shiro decided in was necessary to walk up to the two to talk to them. 

“Cadets,” Shiro greeted, smiling at them. “Good to see you.”

“Captain Shirogane,” James said with a serious nod. Ryan only nodded in recognition, not showing any emotion whatsoever. 

“At ease,” Shiro said with amusement. “We’ve fought together, Griffin. You can call me ‘Shiro.’” 

James looked taken aback, appearing as though he really did not want to call “Captain Shirogane” by his nickname. Ryan, yet again, nodded in recognition. From his expression, Keith could see Ryan didn’t mind calling Shiro by his prefered name at all. It was only James who wanted to reject losing that “respect” for authority. Keith didn’t remember Ryan at all from his time as a young cadet at the Garrison, but he noticed James hadn’t changed a bit in terms of his intense need to follow rules. 

“Keith, I’ll get some for you and you can wait here,” Shiro said, giving Keith one last glance before heading to the front of the shop where the workers were handing out the bright treats.

“I’ll go too,” Ryan said simply, moving away with Shiro toward the front. 

Keith knew that Shiro didn’t intend to put Keith in this situation, probably hadn’t thought about it at all. That didn’t make this moment between James and Keith less unbearable. 

While there had been some sort of agreement between the two that comradery against evil was more important than a childhood rivalry, their relationship still wasn’t really in “best friend” territory. While they were on “talking if they had to” terms, that did most definitely not mean they would be anything but awkward when forced into a situation alone together. 

“Captain Shirogane, huh?” James said, breaking the uncomfortable silence. 

Keith raised an eyebrow at him. “What about him?” 

James gave him an annoyed look. “Look, Kogane. We’re comrades now, right? Let me just make small talk without making it too difficult, okay?”

Keith frowned. “But what does this have to do with Shiro?” 

“You’re dating, right?” James replied bluntly. 

It was Keith’s turn to be annoyed. He’d gotten that question enough from other curious Garrison kids, and many times from Lance’s sister, so he really didn’t need it from James Griffin. “No, we’re not. We’re just good friends, always have been.” 

James snorted. “Please. Everybody knew you were crushing hard on Shirogane back when we were kids. Now you two are here at the ideal place for a date? I’m not stupid.” 

“You’re here too,” Keith shot back. “Are you on a date?” 

James shifted awkwardly, and Keith felt he knew that he’d had James trapped in the same position Keith had just been in. James and Ryan were just here as friends and James was only being a hypocrite by accusing Keith of being on a date with Shiro. 

“Ryan is my boyfriend,” James finally admitted, looking away. “So, yeah. We’re kind of on a date right now.” 

Keith hadn’t expected that. James had never been the type to wear his heart on his sleeve, much less for Keith to see. He must really want to prove a point to say that. 

It was then that Keith remembered James was absolutely the type to do anything to prove a point. 

“So there,” James continued haughtily, yet with a dusting of pink on his cheeks. “Look how easy it is to not be a liar.” 

“I’m not lying,” Keith shot back. “Shiro and I are just friends. This isn’t a date.” 

Keith had never been on a date before, so he honestly didn’t know if what he was saying about what a date was is actually true or not. How was he supposed to know Shiro, who was only his friend, was taking him to a spot specifically for people who were together. Keith was well aware of his own feelings and had grown to accept them too within those two years he spent with only his mother. He had also accepted that Shiro was most likely never going to be interested back. Did Keith finally recognize his connection with Shiro was unbreakable? Yes, but that didn’t mean Keith expected getting a ring anytime soon.

“Right,” James said while rolling his eyes. “And you’re not wearing Shirogane’s jacket.” 

Keith flushed, crossing his arms over his chest. “It’s my jacket, not Shiro’s.”

He wasn’t lying. It was his jacket. James didn’t need to know the rest, though. 

James gave him a disbelieving look. “So you bought a jacket that’s too big for you on purpose?” 

“It’s not a date and Shiro’s not my boyfriend,” Keith stated firmly. “No matter what you want to think, it’s not like that and it never has been.” 

James scrutinised him for a moment before giving Keith a strange look. “This actually isn’t a date, is it?” 

“That’s what I’ve been saying,” Keith replied frustratedly. “It’s not a date, so just drop it, okay? Shiro and I are just friends and we always have been. I’ve just been in the hospital for a while and he wanted me to see everything. Nothing else to it.” 

James raised a disbelieving eyebrow. “Then where’s the rest of your team? Maybe Shirogane really does want you all to himself. You know, for a date.” 

Keith scowled. He really didn’t want dating advice from James Griffin of all people. 

He didn’t understand why it was so hard for people to believe Shiro was only his friend. While he’d get the occasional knowing smirks when he was with the other paladins in the castle when Keith would spend just a bit too long staring at Shiro in the morning, it seemed that once on Earth the entire planet had come to the consensus that Keith and Shiro were getting married any day now. Now it wasn’t just the paladins who were outspoken, but also giggly cadets and apparently James Griffin too. He didn’t need or want others opinions, he just wanted Shiro in his life and he felt that was what mattered. 

Keith thanked whatever was out there that he didn’t get the chance to reply. Shiro and Ryan now had glasses in their hands full of the iced sweets. 

Shiro handed him the multi-coloured glass with the brightly coloured, frozen substance inside. Inspecting it, it even looked kind of like ice cream. It was a bright artificial looking colour with fruity looking chunks inside, but somehow it still smelled of peppermint with hints of chocolate. It was oddly appetising for something that appeared so fake. 

“They don't have flavours as we know them, but I think this the closest thing to mint Oreo they have,” Shiro explained. “That's still your favourite, right?”

“You remember?” Keith asked bewilderedly. 

“How could I forget the day we all talked about what we missed most on Earth?” Shiro asked, his eyes conveying a fondness Keith wanted to turn away from. “You’d said mint oreo ice cream and your bike, remember?”

“You said chocolate,” Keith muttered. “You said chocolate and peach blossoms.” 

James gave Keith an exasperated look, silently telling his exact thoughts on Keith and Shiro’s interactions. Ryan, as stoic as he usually was, looked between Shiro and Keith with a raised eyebrow. Yeah, he knew exactly what they were thinking and he also knew how not true it was. Friends could know each other inside and out, just as Keith and Shiro knew each other. No matter how much he wished it were true, it wasn’t. 

Keith had remembered the things Shiro missed because he was deeply in love with Shiro and wanted nothing more than Shiro to return to Earth and get what he wanted to be happy, but that was beside the point. The point was the truth of the matter--Shiro wasn’t interested. 

“There were tables outside, right?” Keith asked quickly, needing a way out of this awkward situation. “It’s kind of crowded in here, so maybe we could go outside?”

With relief on both ends, Shiro and Keith went outside while James and Ryan stayed inside. Thankfully Shiro didn’t further question Keith’s decision. The last thing he wanted was for Shiro to know about his and James’s conversation. 

After going outside and eating the ice cream like treats, they returned their glasses to the shop. Shiro then insisted they walk around the shops and vendors they passed getting here, as well as some of the others further on. 

They walked through many shops, enjoying their surroundings but enjoying each others company more than anything else. Keith didn’t even really find anything he really wanted to buy, he just went on with the day loving the way Shiro excitedly went from shop to shop and talking with Keith about how incredible the mix of cultures all together was.

Keith didn’t have the heart to tell him it was a makeshift space mall with how happy Shiro was. It helped that Shiro’s excitement was somewhat contagious. 

Keith also noticed the proximity. Shiro would often lean over closer to Keith and point to somewhere with an explanation about where he was gesturing. Shiro was all too close and Keith was reminded of his conversation with James. He had to remind himself multiple times that Shiro didn’t want to be with him in any way, that this was just a friendly outing after Keith had been stuck in the hospital for days. It was a friend showing another friend kindness. 

But then why hadn’t Shiro brought the others? Was it in his intent to have a private moment with Keith?

Keith didn’t want to think about it anymore when he reminded himself that he’d said it himself that Shiro was only like his brother. 

No matter how deep his mind traveled, Keith tampered it all down to enjoy his time with Shiro. He was especially interested when Shiro introduced him to a small weapons shop. They walked in, Shiro watching on as Keith looked around in amazement at the finely made weapons. There were many displays, some with daggers, some with swords, and some with bows and arrows. 

Keith’s eyes widened when he came across a specific display. The dagger was gorgeous. It wasn’t his Marmora knife, it could never have that sort of sentimental value, but from the beautiful purple and oddly shaped hilt to the sleek shine of the grey metal, it left Keith speechless. 

He didn’t want to know the cost. He didn’t look. It’s not like he really needed it anyway. Keith wasn’t necessarily one to remain practical in every situation (having a red everything was a testament to that), but he didn’t need a new dagger. He had his Marmora dagger and his bayard, it wasn’t a necessity to have it. 

But he sure did like looking at it. 

He turned away for a moment, not wanting to look at the pretty knife anymore only to find it came with a simple leather sheath. He stepped completely away from the display case only to look at a series of leather sheaths of all shapes and sizes, hoping to distract himself from the dagger he liked. He spent a bit of time looking at these, wanting not to turn back to look at the gorgeous dagger he wanted. 

Keith turned again, hoping to tell Shiro he was ready to leave, only to find the man had disappeared from where he’d been behind Keith. Confused, he wondered if Shiro had already left. Before heading toward the door to hopefully find his friend, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He whipped around immediately to find that Shiro had returned. Shiro held out the beautiful dagger and leather sheath Keith had been looking at with a smile.

“It’s nothing like your Marmora knife,” Shiro said honestly as Keith took the dagger from him. “I just saw you looking at it and thought you’d like it.” 

“Shiro…” Keith trailed off, not entirely sure on how to reply.

He really didn’t need to. Shiro somehow sensed his gratitude of the gift. He smiled softly at Keith before placing his much larger hand on Keith’s shoulder. It was his right hand, but it felt warm and gentle nonetheless. Somehow no matter what happened to Shiro, he always had that ability to make people feel cared for. Then Keith came to a realisation. 

Keith really had no idea what a date was, but this sure felt like what those around him had always described. The talking, the laughing, the spending time together, and the unexpected gift? It was all date-like, wasn’t it? 

But Keith didn’t want to think it was a date if it really wasn’t. 

By the time they were through studying the alien spaces, it had grown dark. They’d agreed that it would be best to walk back to the bike where Keith then expected Shiro to take him back to the Garrison to his new designated room on the base.

Shiro didn’t take him back to the Garrison, instead taking Keith down a route he knew well. 

He took him to the place where they’d spend all too much time together as the sun went down. Keith had been only a cadet at the time, and those years were far gone, but he cared for those memories all the same. They talked stars and of their personal histories, with Keith revealing things he had to nobody else before. It was out here that was the start of Keith growing deeply in love with Shiro. 

Apparently Shiro had planned this day out so perfectly he’d apparently bought a blanket at the market for them to sit on above the sand. Keith had raised an amused eyebrow, to which Shiro only shrugged. 

He spread the blanket out over the ground, sitting down before gesturing toward Keith to sit too. Keith sat, and then scooted closer to Shiro. It was probably closer than necessary, especially with how much room remained on the blanket, but Shiro didn’t seem to mind. Instead, he leaned into Keith’s space, a move that Keith tried to tell himself was only subconscious. The both of them had done it before when sitting next to each other on the castleship. Keith distinctly remembered Shiro doing the same action when they were watching a movie Pidge had somehow been able to display some alien movie in one of the rooms on the ship. Keith had written it off then as a simple movement, and he’s doing the same now. It means nothing. 

“I remember how much I loved them, how much I wanted to touch them,” Shiro admitted quietly, eyes not leaving the dark sky and glittering stars. “I guess I got what I wanted, huh?” 

Keith frowned when Shiro let out a humourless laugh. 

“It was rough, but there were good times too,” Keith pressed. “The team? Us? As hard as it was sometimes, piloting in space is something we’ve both always wanted. You can’t deny that there were times we had fun? Right?” 

Shiro didn’t say anything for a few moments. 

It was then Keith remembered the day he learned about Shiro’s time in Galra hands. 

Shiro only ever spoke about it once. It had been an accident, Keith seeing the scars that marred Shiro’s skin. They were ugly ones--bite marks, scratches, stab wounds, and burns. When Shiro finally noticed Keith had walked in, he’d looked away in shame, apologising for something he didn’t need to apologise for. Keith had desperately wanted to reach out to Shiro, kiss his scars and tell him how beautiful he was. He wanted Shiro to feel beautiful, to know that he was loved in full despite what he thought of himself. 

When Keith had seen, Shiro felt he had no other choice but to tell Keith what had happened in the Galra arena. They’d sat down, Shiro telling Keith of the fights and his treatment in Galra entrapment. Keith could tell when Shiro had left out the more gory details, his voice going dead in some parts of his story. Keith had been furious and wanted to fight every Galra with his bare hands after that.

Point was, Shiro had been through more than the other paladins. He’d been through physical and psychological torture in Galra hands, and Keith had felt foolish to have forgotten. What didn’t help is that for a period of time Shiro had been dead and helplessly watch his clone interact with the other paladins while he was alone in another plane of existence. Yes, Shiro had some good times, but Keith wondered if the bad heavily outweighed the good in this case. 

He wanted to think that Shiro’s time with Keith had somehow made up for all of that, but he highly doubted it at this point. 

Shiro remained silent, staring back up at the stars, and Keith wondered if he was thinking the same things that Keith was. 

“Keith, I think we need to talk,” Shiro said eventually. His eyes were still on the sky, but Keith could see how glazed over they appeared. His attention was off somewhere else and Keith was afraid of what that could mean. 

He sounded serious, much too serious to point out constellations Keith already knew about or reminisce about better times. 

Keith tensed, not ready for whatever this talk was going to bring. “What do you mean?” 

“I mean about the fight,” Shiro explained softly. 

Keith remained silent. He didn't want to talk about it, and no matter what Shiro said, Keith knew he didn't want to talk about it either. Would Keith have been content if he’d gone on forever never discussing this? Probably not. The problem here was not that Keith truly wanted to go his entire life without closure, it was that the memory was painful. 

“That scar,” Shiro began sadly, his gaze traveling to the side of Keith’s face. 

“It wasn’t you,” Keith insisited before Shiro could continue. The last thing he wanted was Shiro to feel guilty over this. 

Shiro’s hand twitched at his side, and Keith couldn't help but imagine Shiro reaching up only to caress his cheek. He'd run his thumb over the scar. Keith would quickly give in to the action and lean into Shiro's touch, wanting nothing more than to physically feel that affection from Shiro that Keith craved. That worry would fade to fondness as Keith would gently place his hand atop of Shiro’s, giving it a gentle squeeze to convey love and comfort.

Keith tried not to be disappointed when Shiro’s hand remained where it was. 

“I remember everything,” Shiro admitted. “I remember how much I hurt you.” 

Now it was Keith who was holding himself back—he wanted to touch Shiro. He wanted to hold his hand, to wrap his arms around him in a hug. The last thing the fight had been was Shiro’s fault, and there was no way Keith was going to allow Shiro to think anything but. 

“It wasn’t you,” Keith repeated, but spoke stronger this time. “Shiro, the fight was all Haggar. She controlled your clone. The fight… I won’t lie about it. It was bad, but that doesn’t mean you deserve to hate yourself like this when I’ve never had any reason to hate you.”

“I’m sorry, Keith,” Shiro apologised. “I… I know I shouldn’t hate myself, especially when you don’t, it was just hard not to blame myself when you were hurt so bad. I care about you and I needed to know how you felt about it all. I needed to know you weren’t still hurting.” 

“What happened is over now,” Keith said firmly. “We’re here and we’re okay. You’re you again and we’ve just had the best day together that we haven’t been able to have in a long time. You’re now the Captain of Atlas and I’m the leader of Voltron. We work together to help people. That’s what matters.” 

“Keith, I just needed to know you’re okay,” Shiro insisted. “I know how strong you are, but that doesn’t mean we should keep things bottled up. The fight was something big and it wouldn’t have been healthy if we never talked about it. I’m sorry, but I had to know you weren’t hurting.” 

“What about you?” Keith asked suddenly. “Shiro… I heard about Adam. I could see the days when you tried to hide the pain you were feeling. I’ve known you for years now, I know when you’re hurting.” Keith then dropped his volume, speaking softly. “You can trust me, you know? You can tell me what you need to.”

Shiro conveyed no emotion, and Keith knew exactly why. Shiro felt guilt over everything that happened with Adam. Even just after the breakup while Shiro was still on Earth, Keith always saw those times when Shiro’s “I’m alright” smiles felt fake. He’d loved Adam and hated how it ended. He felt he’d wronged Adam somehow, and Keith would desperately try to change that. 

“I could have saved him,” Shiro admitted sadly. “He’d been right, you know? The Kerberos mission only ended in disaster. He also died thinking I was dead. No matter how bad it ended, he deserved better than that.” Shiro surprised Keith when he let out a humourless laugh. “There were two fights we had so often, and now I know how right he was. He could see right through everything and it was too late before I could realise it.” 

Keith frowned. He remembered Adam after Shiro’s “death.” They’d fought a lot about it. Keith believed Shiro was alive, that the “pilot error” was all a horrendous mistake. He’d tried to appeal to Adam, to say that he should know better than anybody Shiro’s skills were too good for that. Adam argued back coldly, saying Shiro’s disease could have easily ended the mission in disaster, the pilot error signs being completely true. 

Keith had only raged more. He needed somebody’s help and the one person he thought he could appeal to was against him.

Keith’s raging only made it worse. It didn’t help Keith was nothing but a problem in Adam’s class, especially after Keith had become aware of those fights that hurt Shiro. Keith was just some kid to him. He was a kid who was unrealistic, a kid who was relying on his fantasies that the only man he’d ever cared about and who cared about him was still alive.

Looking back, Adam had been realistic. Despite the messy break-up he’d been hurting too. He’d been Shiro’s partner for five years and boyfriend for two. Even though Keith hadn’t realised it at the time, Adam had cared too. He probably blamed himself as well. Adam had truly never been a terrible guy, he’d just been somebody in Keith’s way and Keith couldn’t handle the lack of support as a kid.

Then a thought occurred to him. “Two fights?” 

Keith had only ever known about the one, about Kerberos. Shiro mainly hid his fights with Adam from Keith, but Keith had heard one day one of their fights about Kerberos before he was just about to knock on the door for his study session with Shiro. He saw the later cold looks and inches they would separate themselves with and that only solidified what he’d heard earlier. 

A second fight? That was something Keith didn’t know anything about. 

Shiro paled. He clearly hadn’t thought this out and was regretting the decision to speak about it. “It doesn’t matter now. What matters was he was right about it, and I was so blind to it that I feel guilty and wrong. He deserved so much better.”

“You don’t have to tell me,” Keith quickly amended. “You don’t, but please, Shiro. You can’t feel wrong about something you couldn’t help. People break up and you couldn’t help being caught by Galra. You can’t feel guilty about something that happened in the past. Adam wouldn’t want you to feel guilt over this. You fought, but Adam would never want to hurt you so bad, remember?”

Shiro looked over at Keith in shock before his expression changed to something Keith really didn’t know how to identify. “You’ve grown up so much, Keith.”

“Two years with your alien mom will do that to you,” Keith replied, trying and failing to put some amusement in his tone. 

Shiro frowned, looked away, and Keith instantly regretted his words. He wasn’t sure why Shiro was upset, but doing so anyway could never do anything but hurt Keith too. “Two years is a long time. Did you… did you ever think about the team? About me?” 

Keith smiled softly, remembering every word he spoke and every smile his mom would have when he spoke so fondly about Shiro. “I think my mom was tired from how many times I talked about the team, and especially you. She also… she saw my memories. She saw my memories with you. At this point I’m sure she knows you as well as I do.” 

Shiro only smiled softly, accepting that answer gratefully. “I'm glad you found her. I’ve always believed you deserved a good family more than anybody.”

“You’ve always been my family,” Keith replied automatically. “For the longest time you’re the only one who’s been there for me when I needed it. I love my mom, but that will never change what you’ve done for me.” 

What Keith hadn’t expected was for Shiro to look away and frown. 

“‘Just family,’ huh?” he repeated sadly. 

“Yeah,” Keith replied with uncertainty. “Shiro, you’re my brother.” 

Shiro only looked as though he were more distressed. To anybody else he’d just appear stoic, but Keith knew him better than that. Something was bothering him and he didn’t want to tell Keith what it was. 

No matter how well Keith could see something was wrong, he didn’t know what he’d said. He’d stated multiple times him and Shiro were like family and Shiro had no problem with it before. Now, however, Shiro looked like there was nothing worse than the idea that Keith only saw him as a brother. Keith briefly panicked, wondering what he’d done to make Shiro think Keith 

“Am I?” Shiro asked softly, refusing to look at Keith. “Is that all you see me as? Your brother?” 

Keith, growing concerned, nodded. “Shiro, what’s going on? Are you okay?” 

Keith nearly jumped when he felt something solid and warm hesitantly settle on top of his pinky finger. He looked down, only to find Shiro had placed his own human pinky on Keith’s. The action was tentative, almost as if Shiro was scared that Keith was going to reject the touch. Once Keith didn’t show any signs of moving away, Shiro continued to further slowly settle his whole hand on top of Keith’s.

The touch was small, but implied an intimacy that Shiro had never given to Keith before. 

“I love you,” he murmured. 

Keith couldn’t believe what he’d just heard. Keith’s eyes widened, believing that he’d misheard somehow, but deep down knowing that wasn’t true. 

“I love you,” he repeated, his gaze not once leaving Keith's face. “I know what you said about me being your brother, but I can’t go on anymore without telling you how I really feel. Keith, you mean everything to me in a way I can’t call familial anymore.” 

Keith was stunned. Those words were what he’d been longing to hear for such a long time now. It had been just a year after he joined the Galaxy Garrison when he began falling hard for Shiro. Since then he’d imagined hearing those words over and over again, wanting nothing more than it to all be real. Now here he was, underneath a blanket of shining stars, Shiro’s warm hand enveloping his, and hearing the first “I love you” from the man he’d loved in return for a long time. It was something not even his deepest dreams could conjure up. 

“I love you, too,” Keith admitted. 

Shiro smiled, his whole expression conveying relief and love. Keith smiled back, realising Shiro wanted this just as much as he did in this moment. Shiro was in love with him. He didn’t know when it happened, but that was a question for another time. Now, he only wanted to bask in the light that was Shiro’s love. 

Shiro then tilted his head up and pressed a light kiss to Keith’s forehead. The touch was gentle, only a brush of lips against his skin. Keith loved the feeling all the same. 

He loved it, but he was the type to go all out or not at all. He wanted more. 

He curled a hand around the nape of Shiro’s neck and led a hesitant Shiro down toward him. He closed his eyes and then pressed the older man’s lips against his own. It was only the lightest of touches, nothing heavy, but it was still breathtaking all the same. 

They parted, opening their eyes just the barest amount. They gazed at each other another moment before grinning brightly. 

“So is this why you made today a date?” Keith asked with amusement. 

Shiro’s eyes widened at him. “Was today a date?!” 

Keith could do nothing but laugh. Shiro, as confused as he was, eventually gave in to Keith’s laughter. 

A confession wasn’t something he’d expected of the day, but he’d have it no other way. Shiro loved him, and Keith loved Shiro. As impossible as he'd thought this could ever be, the universe suddenly felt right.


End file.
